My first 8x10

tjaded · Nov 6, 2008

Hi all--
I just bought my first 8x10 last night...a Burke & James. The price was too low for me to pass up. Anyway, the lens on the camera is a Wollensak Betax No. 3 6 1/4" f12.5. Has anyone here ever used one? Any good? I'm going to try to shoot a test or two today, the shutter speeds are off, though the 1/50th seems good enough for government work.
Adios,
Matt

Nick Zentena · Nov 6, 2008

Betax #3 is the shutter. Is it really F/12.5? I wonder if you got some wide angle lens? That's 160ishmm I think. Would need to be a wide angle to cover 8x10.

Wonder if the lens is worth more then the camera -)

tjaded · Nov 6, 2008

Let's see, it says it is a wollensak 8x10 eries IIIa EX.W.A. f12.5 6 1/4" focus. I don't know anything about Wollensak!

climbabout · Nov 6, 2008

wollensak

Welcome to 8x10. I own that very lens - it just covers 8x10 with very little room for movement. It's very wide angle - 159mm - a normal 8x10 lens would be 300mm. I rarely use it, but never travel without it as it is so small and lightweight - it's a real gem - and plenty sharp when stopped down a bit. I believe mine is in an alphax shutter though.
Tim

Pinholemaster · Nov 6, 2008

If the lens is a 6 1/4" focal length, then you've got a wide angle. A 'normal' for 8x10 format is the diagonal of the film plane, so 12" to 14" lenses are usually considered "normal". I use a 300 mm as my "normal".

Enjoy the new machine.

John Kasaian · Nov 6, 2008

I've got a wolly like yours for my 8x10. As others say it is very wide and I find of limited use---but when you need wide, you need wide It offers zilch in the way of movements however, so you'll probably find a more "normal" lens easier to work with (when using wolly, the B&J's bellows are going to be crunched up something fierce!)
Fortunately there are plenty of good 8x10 lenses on the market relatively cheap. Something from, 9-1/2"(240mm) to 15"(375mm) would be more useful if your just starting out, but seriously don't sell your wolly! Really wide 8x10 lenses are expen$ive and dreadfully large and heavy.Your wolly is neither and some day you're probably going to want a wide in your kit.
Good luck!

jmcd · Nov 6, 2008

Wolly

I've got one of these in an Alphax shutter, and it makes great prints. Movement may be limited, but I find that with wide angle a little movement can go a long way. I like this lens.

ic-racer · Nov 6, 2008

Congrads with you new setup. I use a 210mm as my "normal" lens on 8x10. Looks like Nicholas Nixon also uses WA lenses with 8x10, this one is probably similar to the view you will get with yours.

tjaded · Nov 6, 2008

So I got the camera, wooden tripod, lens, 4x5 reducing back, 5x7 reducing back all for $295...seems like a good deal. I just put 2 sheets of very expired E-6 in the soup, so I should know what this lens is like in a little bit!

John Kasaian · Nov 6, 2008

Mine is a f9.5 "yellow dot" in an Alphax. Perhaps the f12.5 is slightly more generous when it comes to movements. I've heard that somewhere (?) So it could it be a trade off between speed and coverage? I've also heard that the f12.5 has a screw that can be removed to make the aperture open up wider (faster?)

While a delightful wide, still not the lens I'd recommend for a newcomer to the format. At f/9.5 the gg is quite a bit dimmer when compared to a G-Claron's f/9---I'd hate to think of what 12.5 would look like. That, crunched bellows and the lack of movements are my reasons for thinking that a more normal lens would be easier on a new 8x10'er.

Tori8x10 · Nov 6, 2008

I don't know what format you were shooting before but you'll love 8x10! I have a 210 that I lent a friend because I didn't think I would use it, but after the little Humboldt get together I know I need to get it back. Right now I have a 300 and a 450 and have to agree that the 300mm is a great all purpose lens.

John Kasaian · Nov 6, 2008

tjaded said:
So I got the camera, wooden tripod, lens, 4x5 reducing back, 5x7 reducing back all for $295...seems like a good deal. I just put 2 sheets of very expired E-6 in the soup, so I should know what this lens is like in a little bit!

A very good deal indeed! The wolly would be a superb pairing with the 5x7 back.

tjaded · Nov 8, 2008

Interesting test...I just used a Caltar 210mm 4x5 lens, hoping to get vignetting, but it ended up having total coverage (with no movements) which was a surprise to me. I'll try to post some goofy first test results when I can get time to scan the 8x10 chromes. Actually, the other odd test result was the usage of some Ektachrome 100S that expired in 1993 that held up really well considering that it was open and not refrigerated at all. The ones that I ran normal looked good except for DMAX being a little lame, but when pushed it picked up a magenta cast (the more the push, the more the cast...) It should be fun to run some good film as soon as I feel a bit more confident with the set up!

My first 8x10

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